


As Much As She Loved You

by comicc_bookk_jawnss



Series: Caretaker Dani [10]
Category: The Haunting of Bly Manor (TV)
Genre: Angst, Angst and Feels, Angst and Hurt/Comfort, Canon Compliant, F/F, Fluff and Angst, Fluff and Hurt/Comfort, M/M, Original Character(s), References to Homophobia, references to violence
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-01-08
Updated: 2021-01-08
Packaged: 2021-03-12 12:08:56
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,561
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28635258
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/comicc_bookk_jawnss/pseuds/comicc_bookk_jawnss
Summary: “I’m - I’m like you... we both are!”It was a risk, she knew. They’d both had their suspicions, as well as concerns about why he spent so much time alone and not at home. But Jamie had warned her that they might scare him off if they tried to pry. It was better, she’d said, for him to feel like he had a safe place to go.But now the dye had been cast...//Dani and Jamie intervene when they see a teen boy in need.
Relationships: Dani Clayton & Jamie, Dani Clayton/Jamie
Series: Caretaker Dani [10]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2146191
Comments: 8
Kudos: 107





	As Much As She Loved You

**Author's Note:**

> There are references to violence, homophobia and Dani's death. But there are a lot of sweet moments and what is I hope a mostly uplifting ending.

_**1988**_

“Hey, isn’t that... ”

Dani looked over. A teenage boy was getting out of a car across the street. He was taller than Dani had thought. She was used to seeing him sitting on the bench outside their shop reading. But he was skinny, couldn’t be more than 15.

He never came inside. And whenever either of them went out to say hi, he was always polite but never much interested in talking. Jamie had told Dani he remind her of herself at that age — minus the being polite bit, she’d added with a laugh.

“Yeah, I think it is,” Dani said, as they watched a man get out on the driver’s side. The boy flinched as the man slammed the door shut and looked away, hunched over, before the man even stepped onto the sidewalk.

She felt Jamie put a hand on the small of her back as she stepped behind her. Jamie then ran across the street, catching the man’s arm as he drew it back. He had nearly a foot on her.

“What the fuck?”

“Dani.”

Dani was a step behind her but turned to where Jamie was nodding. The boy had taken off down the street, but her head whipped back as she heard a muffled groan.

“Jamie!”

She was holding her nose. Even in the dark, Dani could see blood dripping down her chin. But just then, the man started moving again. Jamie managed to grab the back of his jacket just before he could take off after the boy.

“Dani, please.”

She was calm. She’d made up her mind. Uneasy as she felt, Dani nodded and took off.

*****

Just as she was starting to worry she’d lost his trail, Dani turned a corner and found him leaning against the wall catching his breath. He jumped and started scrambling down the block.

“Wait!”

The boy was picking up speed, but Dani was out of breath herself. She bent over, resting her hands on her knees.

“I’m - I’m like you... we both are!”

It was a risk, she knew. They’d both had their suspicions, as well as concerns about why he spent so much time alone and not at home. But Jamie had warned her that they might scare him off if they tried to pry. It was better, she’d said, for him to feel like he had a safe place to go.

But now the dye had been cast, so Dani pressed on.

“And I think - I think you know that... I think that’s why you sit outside our shop.”

Dani waited. The boy slowed to a stop. 

“We want to help you.”

The boy slowly turned around, hands in the pocket of his sweatshirt. Even from a distance, Dani had to look up at him. She felt a lump forming in her throat. He didn’t look grateful. It was well beyond that. It was like he couldn’t quite believe what she’d said.

She gingerly took a few steps forward; but the boy didn’t jump back, and in fact, moved a little closer himself.

“I’m - ”

“Dani.”

Dani smiled. They’d introduced themselves to him months ago after he’d come by a few times.

“And my girlfriend?”

He went a little wide-eyed at the word but then smiled shyly.

“Jamie. She’s cool.”

Dani laughed softly. Without fail, every child they met described her as such — not that Dani disagreed, of course. She stepped closer.

“And you?”

The boy looked at her curiously.

“What’s your name, honey?”

“Oh.” He laughed. “Kyle. I’m Kyle.”

“Nice to meet you, Kyle.”

She extended a hand. Kyle looked down at it, then back up at her. He took a deep breath, then covered the remaining feet between them and shook her hand. Then, he returned it to his pocket, took a step back and cleared his throat.

“Kyle, you feel safe at the shop, right?”

He nodded.

“And you know how to get there from here?”

He nodded again.

“Good.” She dug into her coat pocket and pulled out keys. “Lock yourself inside, okay? And don’t open up for anyone other than me.”

He nodded once more and took the keys.

“There are snacks in the back room. That’s what the smaller key is to.”

He smiled.

“Thanks.”

“I’ll be back as soon as I can.”

With that, Dani turned around and started running again.

*****

She heard Jamie’s laugh before she saw her.

The man looked almost exactly she’d last seen him. He shook hands with two cops. And then there was Jamie, sitting on the sidewalk, leaning back against a storefront. As she watched, Jamie turned toward her and spat blood onto the sidewalk.

The street lamp caught Jamie’s face, and Dani’s breath caught in her throat. The bloody nose had been horrifying enough to Dani but now she could barely see Jamie behind blood and bruising.

“JAMIE!”

Dani was sprinting, but she could barely even feel her legs. Jamie looked up as she wiped her mouth with the back of her hand and tried to stand but then gasped. Dani caught her and eased her back down, kneeling beside her. For a moment they locked eyes, tears streaming down Dani’s face, then Jamie buried Dani’s face in her shoulder.

“I’m okay, I’m okay.” She smoothed Dani’s hair with a trembling hand. “It looks worse than it is, I promise.”

Jamie felt Dani shake her head, but before she could try again, she heard the man wish the cops a good night. Dani jerked her head up and was on her feet before Jamie could stop her.

“Why aren’t you arresting him?”

Dani managed to keep her voice level, just barely. But she could see the cops were already ready to call her hysterical as they turned around, sighing.

“Ma’am.”

“He assaulted my... friend.”

Dani just barely caught herself in time. It physically hurt to bite back the prefix, but she didn't want to make things worse.

“She instigated.” That was the other cop.

“Excuse me?!”

She was shouting now, but she no longer cared.

“She interfered in a family matter.” That was the first cop again.

“Where is my son, by the way?”

That voice again. The moment Dani’s glare shifted to him, she felt herself lunging forward. But then she felt an arm stretch out in front of her. Jamie’s chin rested on her shoulder.

“Is he okay?” She was whispering.

Once Dani calmed down enough to process what she’d said, she put a hand on Jamie’s back.

“Good. Let’s go.”

For a moment, Dani remained in place, and then she realized Jamie’s arm was shaking — her whole body, actually. She stepped back and gently took Jamie’s hands. Aside from the smear of blood from her mouth on her right hand, they looked perfectly fine.

Dani’s gaze shifted back to the man, who looked perfectly fine, except for his hands. His knuckles were bruised and cracked. Dani felt herself shaking now, too.

Even from the little Jamie had told her, Dani knew full well that Jamie could hold her own, regardless of her opponent’s size. It was the only thing that had made her feel at all okay about leaving her, and now she realized that Jamie had never had any intention of fighting. She’d simply been buying time.

And yet, she was still the one being faulted.

Dani gently wrapped Jamie’s arm around her shoulders and her own around Jamie’s waist, turning her back on them, and walked off into the night.

*****

“Should’a seen me back in the day.”

Kyle had been sitting behind the counter reading when Dani had knocked. Blanching, he’d scrambled out of his chair and rushed over with the keys. Wordlessly, he’d held open the door, then helped Dani lift Jamie onto the counter as she groaned.

Now he was back behind the counter, facing away as Dani examined Jamie. Dani had unbuttoned her shirt, which was already speckled with blood that had dripped off her face, fearing what more she might find, but as it happened, Jamie’s arms and body were largely unscathed, save a few bruises.

It was her face that would need tending to, as Dani had already seen. But now, in the light, Dani felt tears springing to her eyes once more. In addition to her nose, Jamie's lip was split in several places; she had cuts on both her cheeks; and her right eye was swelling by the minute, already half-closed. Jamie, naturally, was trying to laugh it off. But she stopped immediately when she saw Dani’s lips quivering.

“Sorry.” She cupped Dani’s face. “Oh, baby, I’m sorry.”

It was hard to remember sometimes just how much Dani loved her. Dani swallowed, blinking away tears, and gripped Jamie’s wrists.

“I’m just glad I’m here this time.”

“You and me, both. Self-amputation would’a been rough.”

Finally, Dani smiled, despite herself. As Jamie laughed, Dani looked behind her.

“Kyle, you hungry?” As she was saying it, she saw empty wrappers littered across the back counter. “Hungrier?”

*****

Dani paused after stepping through the door with the pizzas.

“Sorry, I - I didn’t know what else to do.”

Dani smiled. In the not even five minutes she’d been gone, Jamie had fallen asleep sitting up. Kyle was now awkwardly trying to prop her up with one hand and keep an ice bag secure on her eye with the other. And to top it all off, Jamie was wearing a sweatshirt two sizes too big — Kyle had insisted it was the very least he could do — which, paired with her jeans and Converse, made her look like a teenager herself.

“Thank you.” Dani put the pizzas down on the counter. “I can take it from here.”

Kyle gently let go, once Dani was in place, then stepped back, scratching the back of his neck.

“Actually, if you - could you drag the couch out from the back room?”

“Uh, yeah. Yeah, of course.”

Kyle emerged a few moments later. Dani turned to supervise.

“There. That’s perfect. Thank you.”

The couch was only a couple feet away now, facing the counter. She turned back to Jamie, put the ice bag down and wrapped Jamie’s arms around her neck.

“Oh, I can - ”

“I got her. You go ahead and eat... Thank you, though.”

Jamie was a bit heavier than her, muscle mass and all, [but Dani had built up strength enough for short distances](https://archiveofourown.org/works/29269911). Jamie, she’d learned, [could fall asleep pretty much anywhere if she was tired enough](https://archiveofourown.org/works/28698432). And it was certifiably adorable, though every time Dani couldn’t help but think with a twinge of melancholy about why she’d developed such a skill in the first place.

As Kyle opened up the top pizza box, Dani pulled Jamie towards her, gently sliding her off the counter.

“Mmm.”

Jamie nestled her head on Dani’s shoulder and crossed her legs around Dani’s waist.

“Hi.” Dani went into a softer and slightly higher voice reserved exclusively for sleepy Jamie. “Feeling better?”

She felt Jamie nod. After washing her face, then disinfecting her cuts and patching up those she could, Dani had given Jamie Motrin, which evidently had done its job.

“Good.”

Jamie had promised they could go to the hospital tomorrow to make sure nothing more serious was wrong. But for now, she wanted Kyle to be their priority. She hadn’t said that last part. But she hadn’t needed to.

Dani sighed, closing her eyes. For a few moments, she just held Jamie. Then, she opened her eyes, turned around, walked to the couch and gently sat her down. She closed her eyes once more as she kissed Jamie’s forehead, then reopened them and sat down beside her.

She could’ve made it to the back room, of course. It wasn’t that much farther. But she’d had Kyle drag the couch out because she hadn’t wanted to leave either of them alone, and she knew neither of them wanted to be.

Jamie, eyes still closed, curled her feet up, slowly turned onto her back and layed her head in Dani’s lap. Dani gently layed her left arm across Jamie’s chest, and Jamie wrapped her arms around it. With her other hand, Dani massaged the top of Jamie’s head.

“I’m so sorry.”

Dani looked up. Kyle was holding a slice, but he’d barely touched it.

“If I’d known... when I ran... ”

“She knew what she was getting into.”

“But she doesn’t even know me!”

Kyle blanched again, not intending to have raised his voice.

But Dani was smiling. She looked down.

“She didn’t know me, either.”

* * *

_**2002** _

It had been years, over a decade, but Jamie had recognized him almost immediately as he walked through the doorway. He was even taller. He’d filled out. He wasn’t hunched over. And, most significantly, he was smiling, brightly, even moreso when he’d spotted her.

They’d hugged. Jamie had laughed as he practically bent double. Then there'd been the introduction.

“Thank you for everything you did for him,” Ethan, Kyle’s husband, had said as he shook Jamie’s hand.

Smiling, Jamie had shaken her head.

“It was all Dani.”

Then, the inevitable question had arisen.

“Where is she, anyway?”

Kyle was now looking around the shop eagerly. Then, he saw it. The framed picture on the wall behind the counter.

“Oh... ” He looked back to find Jamie looking down. “Oh, I’m so sorry.”

When Jamie finally looked back up, Ethan was rubbing Kyle’s back as tears streamed down his face. He tried to rub them away when he saw Jamie looking at him.

“Sorry, I - ”

“No, no. That’s okay.” She moved closer to grip his arm. “Here, uh, stay here.”

A few moments later, Jamie was dragging the couch out from the back. Then, they sat. For a few minutes, no one said anything, save for Kyle thanking Jamie for tissues.

“She would’ve loved to see you, too.”

Kyle smiled sadly.

“I just - I wanted to thank her.”

Jamie nodded.

“No, not - not for the reason you think.”

Jamie raised an eyebrow. Kyle hesitated for a moment, then smiled again.

“That night on this couch we talked for hours. I told her everything... but she told me a lot, too.”

Jamie waited for him to elaborate but could already feel tears gathering in her eyes.

“The person we talked about most... was you.” Kyle swallowed. “That was really what gave me hope. I’d never heard someone — someone like me — talk like that.”

Tears were starting to trickle down Jamie’s face now, too.

“That was really what kept me going, more than anything... that one day I would find somebody who loved me... as much as she loved you.”

It was at that point that Jamie broke down.

“Sorry, I didn’t - I didn’t want to - ”

Jamie shook her head and threw her arms around his shoulders.

“Thank you.”

She could barely choke out the words. Then, she turned her head to the picture.

It was small. Dani wouldn’t have wanted anything ostentatious, she knew. And it was casual, just a candid she’d taken in the shop of Dani mid-laugh. She wasn’t looking directly at the camera, hadn’t even realized she was being photographed yet. And that’s what Jamie loved most about it.

It was just a snapshot of an ordinary day, except it wasn’t ordinary because days with Dani had never been. Only she knew when it had been taken, and only she knew why Dani was laughing.

“Thank you.”


End file.
